Learn more about what it is like to be in foster care from these real stories. The stories are written by the youth, for the youth. Each youth below experienced foster care and shared their #fosteryouthvoice in order to inspire, advocate, connect to other foster youth and to show that their voice can make a difference. The views and opinions expressed in the Real Stories are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of FosterClub.

Lucina's Story

My childhood was filled with war and terror, from growing up in a war-torn country to fighting my own battle with accepting my identity as a Queer Black Muslim girl. I was born in Liberia during my country’s second civil war that displaced so many... Read more
Real Stories
LGBTQ youth

Marcus' Story

I am Marcus Bell; I am 27 years young and I was raised in the system. I came into care at the age of six months along with my two brothers. I was placed into six different foster homes and separated from my siblings several times. Although, I... Read more
Real Stories
LGBTQ youth

Dameon's Story

Sometimes life gives you a bad hand. With your cards already dealt, there’s nothing else to do but take a seat and play the game. At the age of 6, I was brought into the foster care system after accidentally burning down mine and my mother’s room –... Read more
Real Stories
LGBTQ youth

Tim's Story

I entered foster care at age 12. I was in an abusive home and would act out so that I could get in trouble and hopefully get recognized so that I could get help. Life in foster care as an LGBTQ youth was far from easy. When I went into my first... Read more
Real Stories
LGBTQ youth

Eric's Story

When I was 8, I would find myself in a peculiar but fateful point in my life when I would enter into the Arkansas Foster Care system through child endangerment and neglect. Fortunately, my mother complied with the requirements in order to end our... Read more
Real Stories
LGBTQ youth

Courtney's Story

I like to tell myself, that not everyone gets their traditional story. My parents weren’t fit to be parents or even to be part of the public eye at that point. When I was in 5th and 6th grade, I just had my first boyfriend and saw what his family... Read more
Real Stories
LGBTQ youth

Veda's story

Veda's Story At a very young age, about six months old, I was removed from my parents care and placed in the foster care system. It took months for my caseworker to get in contact with my maternal grandmother. By the age of two, my grandmother was... Read more
Real Stories
LGBTQ youth

Isaiah's Story

Isaiah's Story I am the oldest of five and grew up with a single mother. Because of this, I took on many responsibilities to help my mother support my siblings. Some would have said I played a parent role by ensuring my siblings did their chores and... Read more
Real Stories
LGBTQ youth